July 16 - Nova Scotia Northumberland and Fundy Shores

The original purpose of July 16 was to simply relocate ourselves from PEI to the base of Cape Breton. We had plans to meet friends in Antigonish in the evening, and were setting out to the Cabot Trail first thing on the 17th. Outside of that, our day was flexible and full of options. As it turned out, it was a day full of surprises, and one of the best days of the trip.

Our first decision was to leave PEI via the Confederation Bridge rather than by ferry, as this gave us the most sightseeing opportunities and didn't leave us bound to a ferry schedule. Almost immediately after crossing the bridge, we came upon our first surprise of the day. Looking for a spot to take some photographs of the bridge, we pulled off at a rest area as we entered New Brunswick.

The rest stop ended up being Cape Jourimain, and while it did offer great views of the bridge (including an observation platform), it also offered a whole lot more.  The Cape Jourimain National Wildlife Area comprises 621 hectares of preserved shoreline, marsh and mature forest that can be explored via a number of short hiking trails. We unfortunately only had time for a short nature walk, but we did spend some time in the interpretive centre, which had excellent displays on the  ecosystems, bird life and human history of the area. One of the most fascinating displays was on the human-pulled sleds that were used to transport people and goods across the Northumberland Strait when the ferries got iced in. If you are crossing the Confederation Bridge, I highly recommend you spend some time exploring the Cape - it was certainly worth our while. 

After another hour on the road and crossing the border to Nova Scotia, we decided to stop in Amherst for a quick lunch. By this point in our trip, we were accustomed to small towns in all parts of the country that were more functional than aesthetically pleasing. We had expected Amherst to be similar, but were pleasantly surprised to find that it was very quaint. Though we didn't stop longer than was required to eat a sandwich, it was another discovery that made the day special.

Amherst, NS 2017

From Amherst, we took a short detour back to the Bay of Fundy and Joggins Fossil Cliffs. The drive through narrow, winding back roads left us wondering just what we were getting ourselves into; but once we arrived it didn't take long to realize we had found somewhere special. This UNESCO World Heritage Site houses the world's most complete record of Devonian (100 million years before the dinosaurs) fossils, and was one of the inspirations for Charles Darwin's Origin of Species. Unlike the fossil beds in Alberta which can be difficult to access and are highly controlled, here you can walk down to the cliff face where the tides expose new fossils every day. I highly recommend the guided tour in which you can learn a bit more about the history of the location, the fossils and the earth in the Carboniferous era. From there you can wander, explore and find fossils for yourself.

Fossilized tree, Joggins Fossil Cliffs 2017

Joggins Fossil Cliffs, 2017

Fossilized Amphibian print, Joggins Fossil Cliffs 2017

 After exploring the cliffs and interpretive centre, we drove to Antigonish. Again, we were pleasantly surprised by how cute the town was. We spent the evening with friends at their cabin on Antigonish Harbour, before resting up for the next day's journey to the Cabot Trail.